1. Field of the Invention
This invention pertains in general to fishing lures and in particular to fishing lures of the type which emit a sound which attracts fish to the lure which are then caught by the fish attempting to swallow the lure.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A fish is a red-blooded, gill-breathing aquatic animal, which is believed to be the oldest of the vertebrates. The majority of fresh water and marine fish belong to the ray-fin group, the Teleost, which range from the more primitive herring and their relatives to the highly-developed perch and their allies. It is generally accepted that fish are able to detect or "hear" as well as generate or produce sounds and other mechanical disturbances within their water environment. Most fish have a sensitive lateral line on each side of their body that responds to pressure waves in the water. In some of the fish the air float or air bladder is a supplementary respiratory organ and in others it aids in hearing and may also be used to produce sounds by acting as a vibrator and resonator. The sensory mechanism by which fish detect mechanical disturbances and the functional relationship of the sensitive lateral line and the internal auditory apparatus will be briefly reviewed.
Fish do not hear sound but rather feel vibrations which are transmitted through the water to the sensitive lateral lines on the sides of their body. Mechanical vibrations or sounds cause the entire fish to vibrate. The vibrations are transmitted through the sensitive lateral lines of the fish into an inner ear mechanism. As is the case with all vertebrates, the receptor element in the ear of the fish are hair cells which are connected to cranial nerves. The sensory hair cells in fish are all of the cylindrical form. Very similar cells are present in the equilibratory portion of the ear and in a lateral line where they detect mechanical disturbances such as the small wave made by an insect that has fallen into the water. In each case nerve impulses are triggered by bending of the hairs. In the auditory part of the ear the hairs are imbedded in the tiny gelatinous mass that contains loosely-suspended tiny stones (otolith), while the body of the hair cell is part of the wall of the otolith chamber. When wave sounds impact on a fish, they cause minute vibrations of the whole animal and with it the otolith chamber wall. Since the otolith is floating, however, it moves slowly and with less amplitude than the initiating vibrations. This results in a shearing action on the hairs and thereby generates nerve impulses which are felt by the fish. Most fish do not have any amplifying structure comparable to the ear drum and the middle ear ossicles of mammals. However, in nearly one-third of the fish, the air bladder acts as a drum which, as mentioned above, aids in a fish's hearing and may be used to produce sounds by acting as a vibrator and a resonator.
Most fish of the Teleost species are predators in the sense that they survive by eating other living animals which, most often, are small fish. The auditory capabilities of such fish is very beneficial to their life cycle, in that they can hear the sounds of struggling, frenzied or feeding fish upon which they prey. Such sounds are particularly attractive to predator fish which include but are not limited to grouper, snapper, trout, dolphin, bluefish, and other like fishes which are considered good eating by humans. It is also known that members of the Elasmo group which include other predators such as sharks, are also attracted by the struggling or feeding sounds of other fish. Moreover, recent studies have shown that the auditory mechanism of predator fish are particularly sensitive to low frequency sounds between the range of fifty-to-three hundred (50 to 300) Hertz and that the sounds produced by struggling frenzied or feeding fish are within this frequency range The present invention, in accordance with the above, utilizes the sensitivity of fish to low frequency sounds by attracting such fish having the capability to "hear" these sounds. The fish are caught with lures which produce the low frequency sounds which imitate the frenzied sounds of fish in distress or fish feeding.
In the prior art a number of United States patents have utilized sounds produced by various means in order to attract fish to the lure and thereby aid in catching the same. Typical of these United States patents are: "Audible Fish Lure," U.S. Pat. No. 2,577,229; "Sound Producing Fish and Game Lure," U.S. Pat. No. 2,757,475; "Sound Producing Fish Lure," U.S. Pat. No. 2,784,399; "Fish Lure," U.S. Pat. No. 2,932,110; "Fish Lure," U.S. Pat. No. 3,120,073; "Sonic Fishing Lure," U.S. Pat. No. 3,416,254; and "Vibrating Fish Lure," U.S. Pat. No. 4,223,467. While all of these patents disclose fishing lures which emit sounds, they are typically deficient in that they fail to achieve a sonic fishing lure which combines all of the necessary elements of a successful fishing lure. For example, it is necessary that the lure be of a sufficiently small size to allow catching fish in the range of approximately five-to-ten pounds which is the range of most members of the Teleost species. Further, it is necessary to produce a sound of sufficient magnitude to attract such fish from relatively large distances. Then too, a successful sonic fishing lure produces sound in a frequency range which is attractive to fish. A further deficiency apparent in the prior art is the inability of the prior art fishing lures to produce a sufficiently loud sound and yet not consume an inordinate amount of energy so that the lure may be used for relatively long periods of time without the need to replace the energy source.
Accordingly, a primary object of the present invention is to provide a sonic fishing lure which is small in size but yet produces a sound which is attractive to fish at a reasonably loud level so as to travel in water over relatively large distances and yet consume a relatively small amount of energy so as to have a relatively long operating lifetime.
Another object of the present invention is to provide a sonic fishing lure which produces reasonably loud sound at the relatively low frequency range of between fifty and three hundred (50 and 300) Hertz.
Another object of the present invention is to provide new and improved vibration means for producing an intensified level of sound within the body of a fishing lure in order to produce an external sound having a sufficient intensity to travel over relatively long distances.
Yet another object of the present invention is to provide new and improved means for efficiently transmitting sounds produced internal of a fishing lure, through the walls thereof and into the water surrounding the same.
A still further object of the present invention is to provide a sonic fishing lure which may be used at great water depths, at the surface of the water, or at any location therebetween so as to attract any of the various types of predator fish which normally inhabit the water at the various levels.
The above-stated objects as well as other implied objects, are accomplished by the present invention and will become apparent from the hereinafter set forth Summary of the Invention, Detailed Description of the Invention, Drawings, and the claims appended herewith.